POLICE are hunting three knife-wielding thugs who injured three men in a "targeted attack" on the outskirts of Glasgow at the weekend.

Police are hunting three knife-wielding thugs who injured three men in a 'targeted attack'

The village of Cardowan, near Stepps, Lanarkshire, was "like a war zone" on Sunday afternoon when three men were stabbed and two vans went up in flames.

The injured men - aged 47, 45 and 28 - had been sitting in a parked van on Frankfield Road at around 1.30pm when their vehicle was struck by a second van, which had been stolen on Saturday from Ruchazie, Glasgow.

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Emergency services descended on the scene and the injured men were taken to Glasgow Royal Infirmary for treatment.

Two of the men have since been released, while the 45-year-old remains in hospital where his condition is described as stable.

Police Scotland yesterday [MON] issued an appeal for information and provided descriptions of the three suspects.

Detective Inspector David Reilly, who is leading the investigation, confirmed there were no other injuries other than the three men targeted.

He said: "This was very much a targeted attack - the suspects in the stolen van knew exactly who they were going for.

"For this to happen at all, never mind in the middle of a Sunday afternoon, is just outrageous. Yes, the suspects may have known who they were targeting but there could easily have been other people, including children, in the area - especially with the weather being so nice."

GETTY

The attackers had stolen their van from Ruchazie, Glasgow

All three suspects are described as being white and were all wearing dark-coloured hooded tops at the time of the attack.

The first is 6ft tall, the second has blond hair and was wearing dark trousers, and the third is 5ft4in and of slim build and was wearing a dark-coloured baseball cap.

One of the vans involved belongs to a foreman who works for construction firm Oakstone Developments, based in Ilkley, West Yorkshire.

DI Reilly added: "Considering this is a residential area, it's understandable that locals found the incident alarming.

"We have additional officers patrolling the area and I would ask that anyone who has any concerns or who saw the attack speak to them.

"So far the response from local people has been good but I am still appealing to anyone with information about the attack, the stolen vehicle or any information that will help us catch these men to contact police."

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Cardowan was 'like a war zone' on Sunday afternoon when three men were stabbed

A Police Scotland spokeswoman confirmed that a gun was not used in the attack, as suggested by initial reports.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.